Untitled

[rushilsood]

Hetalia: Axis Powers stands out for its unique approach at depicting world history through anthropomorphized nations. Each country is personified, often with exaggerated stereotypes, engaging in comedic and sometimes poignant interactions that reflect their historical relationships. This setup offers a fresh and accessible way to explore complex geopolitical themes.

Hetalia highlights both Japanese and global issues through its portrayal of historical events and international relations. In Japan, the anime sparks discussions on national identity and the country’s role in global history. By using humor and satire, it encourages viewers to reflect on Japan’s past and its relationships with other countries, promoting a more nuanced understanding of history. Globally, the anime addresses themes of nationalism, war, and diplomacy. The exaggerated characteristics of each nation bring to light the absurdities and stereotypes that often underpin international relations. This satirical lens helps viewers recognize the complexity of global conflicts and the importance of understanding different cultural perspectives.

I personally believe Hetalia provides an entertaining yet insightful look at history, making it more relatable and engaging. The anthropomorphized nations and their interactions remind me of the importance of empathy and understanding in my own life. By seeing historical events from multiple viewpoints, I gain a deeper appreciation for the diverse experiences that shape our world.

Annett’s analysis in “World Conflict/World Conference: Axis Powers Hetalia” offers a valuable framework for understanding the anime’s impact. Annett explores how Hetalia uses humor to address serious historical and political issues, making them more approachable for a broad audience. This aligns with my experience of the anime, where the blend of comedy and history makes complex topics more digestible and engaging.

Given these points, Hetalia: Axis Powers is more than just a comedic portrayal of nations. It provides a unique lens through which to explore historical and global issues, encouraging viewers to reflect on the past and its influence on present-day international relations.

[theanimetedworld]

Hey, Rushil! I really like how you described this anime's portrayal of global relationships. Even though the anime is obviously a parody of real world events, it does show relationships between different countries. I also like how you specified that it shows Japanese national identity as well as its role in the global stage. I agree with you that Hetalia: Axis Powers is not just a comedic anime, but an actual take on historical and global issues. The comedy part just helps make it more entertaining as well as easier to understand what is going on. Overall, I really enjoyed reading your blog post and think you did a great job.

[theanimetedworld]

Hetalia blog

I absolutely loved Hetalia: Axis Powers. This anime was extremely interesting with its many different historical references. I, personally, love history shows and movies so I automatically enjoyed this anime. This anime was so weird but so good at the same time. In Hetalia: Axis Powers, different nations are anthropomorphized and parodied with the use of stereotypes. This anime also does not have any real plot, kind of just having random stories within each episode. With each nation being drawn as a single person, the stereotypes are absolutely hilarious. Japan is a hard working and isolated man, America is young, energetic, and even perceived as somewhat annoying, and overly romantic, carefree, and even overly sexual, trying to flirt with other countries throughout the many episodes. It is so funny to me how the creators of this anime are able to put such complicated and violent conflicts into such random and funny stories. For example, the end of World War 1 is such a complicated part of world history, with Germany obviously being upset with how it ended, but this anime shows this with Italy just being extremely annoying to Germany. This anime shows many global issues through its satire lens. National stereotypes are shown in this anime. The people that each nation represents are thought to be a conglomerate of the different stereotypes of people within this nation. This is an issue in today’s world as stereotypes can be very harmful to some. Also, this anime shows how nations work together diplomatically. Obviously, these interactions are very playful and not exact replicas of how diplomatic relations work in real life, but these interactions go to show how relationships between nations are very complicated. Overall, I really enjoyed this anime and thought that the art style as well as the comedy and parody were hilarious.

[rushilsood]

Your Name is a film that goes beyond cultural and geographical boundaries, connecting with audiences everywhere. The story follows two teenagers, Taki and Mitsuha, who mysteriously swap bodies. This magical premise dives deep into themes of identity, connection, and the blend of personal and societal issues.

The film tackles several important issues within Japan and globally. One major theme is the rural-urban divide. Mitsuha’s life in a small, traditional town is starkly different from Taki’s fast-paced Tokyo life. This contrast reflects the ongoing struggles many Japanese towns face due to urban migration, leading to depopulation and cultural loss. Globally, it mirrors the challenges of preserving cultural heritage amidst rapid modernization. Another significant issue is disaster preparedness. The comet disaster in Your Name is reminiscent of real-life events like the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. It highlights the importance of memory and collective effort in overcoming such tragedies, a theme that resonates worldwide in an era of increasing natural disasters.

On a personal level, the film brings up feelings of nostalgia and a longing for connections that go beyond time and space. The idea of swapping bodies and lives, even temporarily, makes you think about the nature of empathy and understanding. It made me reflect on the everyday challenges and joys that others experience, deepening my appreciation for diverse perspectives.

Michel Foucault’s “The History of Sexuality” offers a unique way to analyze Your Name. Foucault’s method emphasizes the historical and social construction of identities and the power dynamics involved. In Your Name, the body-swapping can be seen as a metaphor for the fluidity of identity and how personal and social histories shape our experiences. The characters’ struggles with their new identities reflect Foucault’s idea that identity is not fixed but is continuously constructed through discourse and power relations.

[theanimetedworld]

Hey, Rushil! I like how you talked about the rural and urban divide as that is something I also discussed in my blog. I think it is really important to highlight just how different the lives of these characters are, not because of them, but because of where they live. Disaster preparedness is another issue that I really liked your discussion of. I did not talk about this in my blog and honestly did not even think about that as a possible global issue. The way you brought in the reading was also very interesting and made your blog post seem very fluid and informational. Overall, I really enjoyed reading your blog post and thought you did a good job.

[theanimetedworld]

Your Name Blog

I really enjoyed watching Your Name even though it was not something I thought I would have liked before watching. The concept of this anime was exactly like Freaky Friday or the many other body swap shows and movies that have been created, but Your Name felt unique and fresh still in my opinion. Unlike Freaky Friday, this film focuses on two characters from completely different backgrounds rather than a mother and daughter. These two characters, Mitusha and Taki, live in very different worlds, with Taki living in the extremely urban city of Tokyo and Mitusha living in the very rural town of Itomori. This film showcases the differences between the lifestyles of people in cities vs. people living in the countryside, as well as the unique issues that each face. Urban migration is a large issue that is displayed within this film, as the loss of people in these small towns, going to cities for a multitude of reasons like economic opportunities or just wanting a change of scenery, has created a loss of culture in these towns. Without the original people of the town, a town is not the same. Environmental protection is another main theme of this film as viewers can see the natural beauty of the town of Itomori, without the pollution present in the city of Tokyo. Identity is another main theme of this film as the two main characters must now attempt to live in each other’s bodies and act like each other for however long they are stuck there. By doing this, they both learn a lot about not only their friend, but about themselves as well. Overall, Your Name was a beautiful film that had not only a lot of valuable lessons and a great plot, but a lot of amazing cinematography throughout.

[pari-patel]

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Blog Post

I appreciate how this deviated from what we have been writing about in our past blogs, but I’m still not a fan of it. It does offer an immersive experience that tackles important environmental issues, but it just didn’t engage me or catch my attention much. This game presents a narrative that resonates with both Japanese cultural concerns and global environmental ones. Set in a world where Earth has been destroyed, it reflects the vulnerability of natural disasters and the chaos that technological advancements bring. It aims for a balance between that and environmental preservation. The narrative connects to climate change and degradation which incites players to consider their own actions on the planet they live, making this both a global and native concern. Furthermore, it elicits that degradation drives human ingenuity for environmental restoration.

Personally, the themes of this game related to my own experiences of being raised in a world where technological progression has outstripped and overshadowed environmental considerations constantly. It further sheds light and is a reminder to prioritize ecological importance and restoration, furthering reducing out environmental footprint and helping better preserve and restore our planet. Through witnessing the impacts of climate change first hand, I advocate for more sustainable practices and, as mentioned in my previous blog post, that is mainly done through participating in annual walk-a-thons and even spreading awareness locally in campus. This further connects to the readings by navigating human relationships with natural ones and the need to recognize both aspects as an integral part of a system. They are not separate entities, but, instead, need each other to facilitate restorative acts and encourage individuals to preserve the planet for future generations to come. It highlights how human and ecological restoration must go hand in hand and that one thing cannot happen without the other supporting it. This is a little different than the Nausicaa Blog Post since that one relied on the planet to restore itself overtime, but this one relies more so on humans and the plant collectively.

[theanimetedworld]

Hey Pari. I think it is really interesting how you were happy with the switch from anime to video game cutscenes as it was the complete opposite for me. I just thought it was kind of odd to watch these cutscenes all in a row without actually playing the game. I think it is really cool how you were able to relate the environmental message within this video game to the real world, talking about the need for sustainability reform. It is also really cool how you actually advocate for this in the real world through your participation in walk a thons. Overall, I really enjoyed reading your blog post and thought it was very interesting.

[theanimetedworld]

Xenoblade Chronicles 2

I was very much not a fan of writing this blog post as I am very confused at the story of Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and what it attempts to accomplish. The fact that Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is not an anime, but a collection of video game cutscenes is somewhat interesting, but I do not enjoy watching video game cutscenes ever, especially when I am trying to find some sort of message ingrained within them. This video game, it was really hard for me to not type anime, focused a lot on the global issue that is environmental destruction, as it is set in a world named Alrest, where massive beings called titans compose the landscape around them, acting as the ground for cities and overall civilizations. Because the titans act as both the landscape and as living beings, it is very obvious to see the message here that we need to protect the world around us as it is also a living thing. This is a very important message, especially in times like today, as our society continues to exploit the world around us, not caring about inhabitants besides humans. For example, deforestation occurs every minute as humans destroy the natural environment for many different reasons, either to build condos or houses, mine for oil, or even just to use the wood as a resource. I can personally relate to this issue because my town was actually built on the Everglades, destroying the habitats of probably millions of plants and animals. This happens in so many different places all over the world, where people do whatever they want with land for economic gain, not caring at all about the original habitants of the land. Overall, though I did not really enjoy watching video game cutscenes, the storyline was kind of interesting and it did have a lot of good messages.

[jpt-1311-deactivated20240823]

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Another Ghibli film I'm glad to finally cross off my list. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is, unsurprisingly for a Ghibli movie, a beautifully animated story with strong themes about humanity's relationship with the environment and a clear message against environmental destruction.

The movie takes place 1000 years after the end of industrial civilization, after the Giant Warriors set the Earth ablaze and the Sea of Decay grew to consume much of civilization. The Sea of Decay is seen by the current humans as an evil that they must constantly fight back to survive and ultimately must destroy. From the beginning of the movie, though, we see that our main character, the titular Nausicaä, is not afraid of the toxic plants and fungus or massive insects that fill the forest. Instead, she is captivated by them, and understands them much better than anyone else. By collecting spores from the forest and growing them underground with clean water and air, Nausicaä discovers that the plants themselves are not toxic, rather it is the earth that they grow on that makes them so. With this discovery, the true nature of the Sea of Decay begins to be explained. The second part comes when Nausicaä falls into the massive cavern beneath the Sea of Decay, where large trees purify the toxic water and air. Now, the truth is revealed. The Sea of Decay is not some disastrous poison that will spread to destroy the land, rather it is nature's response to the waste that the old humans left behind, trying to clean it all up. The message here is twofold: first, it is humanity's mass pollution of the environment that led to these problems - a clear condemnation of humanity's disregard for nature. Second, we may destroy the environment through our actions, but in the end, that will only end up destroying us, and while nature will come back, we may not - a clear warning that environmental problems such as climate change must be taken seriously.

[theanimetedworld]

Hey! I really liked reading your blog post and agreed with all of your analysis. I think it is really interesting how you talked about the difference between what humans believe and what is actually the truth about the Sea of Decay. With humans believing that the Sea of Decay is evil, when in reality it is just nature's reaction to the pollution created by humanity. This is a really impactful message in my opinion, showing that humans refuse to accept responsibility for their actions, choosing to blame others at their first opportunity. Overall, I really enjoyed reading your blog post.

[theanimetedworld]

Nausica of the Valley of the Wind

Nausica of the Valley of the Wind was okay in my opinion. I did not love it but I can see how some people might rave about it. The film was beautiful and the storyline and internal messages were very powerful, especially relating to our world today. This film follows Nausica, the princess of the Valley of the Wind, as she survives in a post-apocalyptic world where the “Toxic Jungle” covers most of the habitable land on the planet. Nausica has a special gift to communicate with the giant insects who rule the Toxic Jungle. Throughout this film, Nausica attempts to save her world, including both the humans and the other animals who inhabit it. This film has a very important relation to global issues in our world today such as environmental destruction and climate change as well as war. The relation of this anime to our global issue of environmental destruction and climate change is extremely obvious as this film is about a world 1000 years in the future that has destroyed their environment and created low quality of life for everyone alive. This is a metaphor for our world and what will happen in the future if we keep acting the way that we currently do. Our climate is rapidly changing and experts warn against this every single day, however nothing changes. We still mine for coal, burn unnecessary amounts of fossil fuels, and do not even attempt to conserve waste or energy. War is also a theme of this film as the different groups in this film that are in conflict due nothing but harm the environment even more, showing the effects of war on the environment, similarly to how it affects the environment in real life. Overall, I thought this anime was fine, but its messages were very impactful.

[kwanyoung]

The End of Evangelion | Themes of Individualism & Reality

The Plot Of The Anime

After the massive destruction and near human extinction, traumatic flashbacks of Asuka Langley Soryu's mother committing suicide, as well as the defeat of her beloved Evangelion Unit-002, we can see that Asuka is comatose, and Shinji Ikari is trying to wake her up, but eventually goes desolate and not responding.

All the Angels have been defeated and there isn't much to do with the Evangelions now. We also get an insight into the Human Instrumentality Project, which Gendo Ikari and SEELE (a secret organization) proposed to force evolve humanity. They believe that humanity reached its evolutionary limits (as we can see Angel species dominate in power) and calls humans and living beings weak and flawed. They thought that merging the existence of everyone into one whole, super-entity, instead of making the beings independent, would make them stronger and comparable to entities like the Angels, as well as solving independent struggles and hating of their own kind. Gendo, personally pushes the project just to see his dead wife again. SEELE, however is hacking NERV's Magi super computers so they can do their agenda before Gendo can, eventually turning into all-out war.

In the near end, Shinji goes hysterical as he witnesses the awakening of the angels (Lilith), a part of SEELE's master plan towards instrumentality.

The Issue In Question

Honestly, this movie took on a very weird and disorienting storyline, so finding themes were quite hard to do so. However, I want to talk about individualism in the space of reality. In the end, the anime talks about reality and the fact the composition went from anime to cinematography. Reality is reality, and you cannot escape it. Dreams and fantasy are where you can find happiness, but it is temporary, and reality will always come for you in the end. Individual-wise, if there was no individuality, and if all entities merged into one, you will be everyone but also nobody. There will be no pain, no suffering, no individual thinking. The concept of fear is lost, there is nothing good in this new combined reality. We see that there is a 5 billion year cycle between individual humans and a single god, and neither can coexist at one period (humans probably messed up injecting angelic remains into individual beings). We can only have individual humans, or all the humans merging into a one supreme being.

So what can I obtain from this? I personally don't have a clear answer. Also, watching this movie quite damaged my mentality in some way. However, I might suggest that what an individual must find is happiness, by facing the fears of society, and suffering through pain. Society and the individual must understand each and they are humans and humans are humans, separated by individualism and scattered from a spectrum whole. But who knows, the movie seems interpretive anyways.

The Issue Addressed In Japan & Beyond

Our world is reality, the place we live and the place we are conscious in. In our world, there is no escaping. Dreams and fantasy are inside our reality and are temporary means of happiness, whether that is sleeping or diving into fiction. It is important for an individual to find happiness in their life and there are no shortcuts. Pain, fear, and suffering are all part of the cycle of living, especially you, and one must suffer through it while maintaining your individualism (be like yourself), which is a good thing as other people can understand who you are in reality and you will find some good helpful people. Our reality does not have a single being just like how all the souls merged in the anime, we have to cope living in this reality.

My Personal Takes

I don't know. My previous statement is what I think about my reality. The movie itself felt like a fever dream, and I writing like I am going through that phase in this blog. My reality is shared among everyone but it is the individual that isn't shared. My individual, my body, my control. By being an individual, I have my own will to shape and bend reality how I want (however in small local bits and if I am confident enough with no pain, fear, nor suffering blocking my path). How I perceive myself and the forgoing reality is destined to becoming my future. I had this kind of thinking and it applies especially in college. If I have a strategic path through reality and have the confidence to execute it, the future will eventually bring me happiness and success.

--- Hysteria mode has ended ---

[theanimetedworld]

Hey Kwanyoung! I was absolutely confused throughout the entire film as there was nothing that was even remotely easy to follow. I really like your thought to talk about individualism as I agree that it is almost impossible to talk about anything else as this film was kind of just a conglomerate of so many random things. Your commentary on our dreams vs. reality is very dreary, but I can respect and understand how you might think that. I personally try to think about it as we live our lives every day trying to be happy, rather than coping with the fact that we are living. Anyways, I really enjoyed your blog post and thought you had a lot of good analysis.

[theanimetedworld]

End of Evangelion

I actually have no words for this movie. Like actually no words. Everything happened so fast and so intensely that it was almost impossible to follow. Basically in this movie, a company named Seele is attempting to finish the Human Instrumentality Project, creating a collective consciousness and destroying individual thought. Obviously, our main characters are against this. I got extremely lost in the middle of this movie with Rei being revealed to be a clone and taking on some other kind of form, I do not know this movie was actually crazy. While yes, it was really cool with some crazy visuals and other things, I did not really like it. I felt like I was entering a warzone every time I turned it on as I just had no clue what was happening. At the end, Shinji is given the choice between completing the Human Instrumentality Project or returning society to pretty much normal. Of course he did not choose to complete the project and the world returned to a slightly different version of what it once was. Identity is a huge global issue present within this anime as viewers can see from how Rei and Shinji act and change throughout the movie. Rei is revealed to be a clone of an original angel, and eventually becoming a god-like being, obviously challenging her mental health and showing how she changes as a person inside and outside. Shinji, on the other hand, feels worthless throughout this film as he does not have the god-like powers like Rei and has never felt like he was special. Overall, while this film does have some good symbolism and representation of real world issues, I was not the biggest fan due to the sheer amount of brain power and concentration needed to enjoy watching it.

[robian]

Evangelion Part 2

Alright Part 2 is where I can actually get to writing. I wrote my part 1 blog almost entirely on Shinji so I'll start off by explaining what I meant by his “character development” that I mentioned in my last post.

Those last 2 episodes were probably super confusing. They probably felt like they came out of nowhere. Some people say it's an amazing ending, while others say it's horrible. Honestly, I don't know how I feel about it. I even needed the help of redditors to get a semi-understanding of what it meant without having the movies spoiled for me. Basically these two episodes are all about Shinji's self hatred and at the very end he comes to finally accept himself. Really, it seems to be that simple. Of course, I haven't watched the movies yet, so if there's more to it, that's probably why.

 Honestly, I knew that Shinji hated piloting the Eva, but I feel that we don't get a true understanding of his self-hatred until these last two episodes. You can say this is dumb, because it may seem like the writers just suddenly had Shinji hate himself, but personally I feel that the story had some obvious hints along the way. When people yelled or even hurt Shinji, he never defended himself. He always avoided problems. Someone who hates themselves, doesn't have the power to protect themselves. 

Alright, I should probably talk about some other characters. Rei still confuses me and I'm betting there's more info In the movies because it seems she has some connection to Shinji's mother. Rei's character development is basically her smiling and shedding a tear. She's attempting to find her humanity and sense of self even though she knows she is different from everyone else. 

Asuka says she's piloting the Eva for herself, but in reality she pilots the Eva as a coping mechanism for her mother. Her mother never cared for her, and the chance to become an Eva pilot meant that people would always care for her, unlike her mother. She believes that if she isn't the best, people will stop giving her attention. She believes that she'll lose any value she has. As of the ending of the series, Asuka is still in a depressive state, but I'm assuming she'll get back on her feet in the movies. 

Finally, I'll talk about Misato Katsuragi. At first, she just seems to be this strong, independent, happy, snobbish, beautiful lady. However, we later find out that she's dealing with some serious trauma of her own. Her dad, who she originally hated, sacrificed his life to save her. It left her confused as to whether she hated her dad or not. She unintentionally sought out things that reminded her of him such as her job and her boyfriend to fill the void left in her heart. At the end of the series, it seems to point out that she is scared of being alone. Her dad leaves her. Her boyfriend leaves her. She just wants anyone's attention and even seemingly makes a move on Shinji.  

Hopefully y'all didn't seriously read all 500+ word yapping session, but part 2 was definitely where the phique of the characters was delved into more. As for my opinions on Evangelion (before watching movies), I liked it, but I don't really understand the hype. 

[theanimetedworld]

Hey Robian! I strongly agree with you that Asuka is a very complex character with a bunch of issues with older trauma. In my blog, I discusses how Asuka's personality comes a lot from how she was raised and not being loved by her mother after her father's death. I also agree with your take on Shinji, that all along it was somewhat apparent that he had strong negative feelings for himself that manifested in the way he acted. Overall, I really liked your blog post and thought it had a lot of similarities to my feelings on this anime.

[theanimetedworld]

Neon Genesis Evangelion part 2

I actually enjoyed the second part of Neon Genesis Evangelion more than the first, as it had a little bit more action and overall excitement. However, I found it very confusing to continue watching the series while not watching every individual episode. I kind of felt like I was missing something at all times. The second part of Neon Genesis Evangelion, beginning with episode 8 introduces the viewers to Asuka, the new pilot of Evangelion Unit-02. Asuka’s introduction, in my opinion, shows the shift in tone and story of this series as her personality is completely different from the other main characters Rei and Shinji. Rei and Shinji are both very nervous and reserved people while Asuka is very brash and confident in everything that she does. I believe that Asuka’s personality is not who she actually is on the inside, but who she has learned to become due to her traumatic childhood. This is a great example of a real world issue of trauma and how it affects everyone it comes in contact with differently as some may decide to shrivel up, losing their confidence while others may become incredibly confident like Asuka. Asuka is also different from Rei, Shinji, and the other characters in this anime due to her nationality. While basically every other character is fully Japanese, Asuka is actually German. While this could be a contributing factor to both her personality and feeling like an outsider, I do not know if I believe that. I think that her nationality is just something that is a part of her rather than something that could actually define her. Overall, I think that this anime was really interesting but I am not sure if it is something that I would die to watch again. I did really enjoy it though.

[mochicrackersss]

Blog Post - Neon Genesis Evangelion ᯓᡣ𐭩‧₊˚ ⊹

I've wanted to watch Neon Genesis Evangelion because it's just so iconic within anime culture. I never did though, because I heard the series could be hard to follow. However, despite that fear, it really drew me in! Evangelion was like Mobile Suit Gundam but a thousand times more terrifying, especially with its darker tones and the presence of Lovecraftian-like Angels.

I can definitely see how the main character, Shinji Ikari, not only rejects masculinity throughout the series (like the readings from this module discuss) but he also rejects everything within the show. The boy is invited by his absent father to be at the organization, Nerv, with no other information. Once rescued by Misato, he is brought to the top secret location where eventually (with much prying by his father) finds out that the only reason he is here is to pilot the mech suit, Evangelion. Suddenly, all the adults around him who told him nothing are now telling him to do everything. They constantly push him to pilot the suit and make him feel horrible if he doesn't, which puts an enormous amount of pressure on Shinji. And once he finally accepts to pilot (only because Rei was hurt) they still belittle him and say things like "Suck it up! "Be a real boy!" and "Stay calm!" as it isn't his first time piloting a dangerous mechanical monster against a terrifying biblically accurate angel.

This is a bit off-topic, but I find it interesting that the mech suit is treated like an uncontrollable wild animal. (Which it kinda is since its revealed to have an alive creature inside.) It's constantly restrained to prevent a "runaway" or becoming "berserk", and only a few people can pilot an Evangelion without rejection. In a way, I wonder if it was an intentional comparison between Shinji and the Evangelion suits. They are considered dangerous deadweight until they become useful to the people around them. Maybe that's why only people who reject societal norms can pilot the suits.

[theanimetedworld]

Hey! I wrote the same thing in my blog about how I have been dying to watch this anime, but just have not. I am very happy that I did though as it was very interesting and a great anime in my opinion. I also agree with you that this anime was a lot like Mobile Suit Gundam, but I liked Neon Genesis Evangelion better because of how much more adult and darker it was. I really like your point about how Shinji rejects masculinity as well as everything else in this anime, which I did not even think about. Overall, I really liked your blog post and agreed with all of your points.

[theanimetedworld]

Neon Genesis Evangelion Part 1

I really enjoyed Neon Genesis Evolution, at least the first few episodes, with a concept that I absolutely love. Giant robot anime, especially older ones, hold a special  place in my heart and are my favorites to watch. When I saw we were assigned this anime, I got really excited as I have always wanted to watch it but just never found the time. This anime starts with a young boy named Shinji being summoned to work for NERV, the company that his estranged father works for and is entrusted with the mission to protect society from destructive beings called angels. Masculinity and toxic masculinity are issues that are extremely prevalent throughout this anime, with Shinji not being the epitome of what some people believe to be “a real man”. Shinji is thought to be basically a wimp. He is always scared, nervous, and extremely indecisive. Growing up without his father seems to be a point in this anime, as he now seeks validation from others due to not having his father there to validate him as a child. This anime shows that masculinity is a stupid concept as the main character, who is thought of as being too feminine, still is able to pilot the Evangelion suit and help to save the world from the Angels. This issue is talked about a lot today as discussion around gender norms is very common. I personally believe that masculinity is such a stupid thing to focus on as we should just let people be themselves in every situation. Toxic masculinity is also very dumb in my opinion; nobody is cooler or better than anyone just because they act tough or unafraid. Overall, I really enjoyed Neon Genesis Evolution because of the awesome concept and technology as well as the great characters.

[mochicrackersss]

Blog Post - Convention Preview ᯓᡣ𐭩‧₊˚ ⊹

I've always enjoyed participating in fandom experiences! Though, I haven't been to anything crazy, like Comic-Con or Anime Expo. My most notable were just a few local Florida conventions. But they were still fun overall and gave a great look into youth culture and fandom communities with its vast amount of participants around the globe and things tailored for each fandom.

My first convention was PolyCon at Florida Polytechnic University. I don't remember much about it because it was a couple of years ago, but would say it was a good time! The convention itself was pretty quaint with not a lot to do and not many people attending besides Polytechnic students. But for being my first exposure to convention life, I was enamored. There was also a student-run maid cafe that was amusing to go to, specifically because my dad came to the convention with me. Younger me had absolutely no idea how to explain to my dad why a bunch of college students were in cat ears, maid costumes, and doing intricate dance routines. He was so confused... it was lowkey hilarious but also embarrassing.

I'd say the most memorable convention memory I have is when I went to Mega Con in 2021! It wasn't super long after the COVID quarantine got lifted, and so until then, I hadn't gone to anything or seen many people for what felt like a long time. Being able to go to a convention (of course, by then it was safe to be in public spaces) and simultaneously going with my best friend for her first time was just what I needed. However, it was very different with COVID regulations still in place, like masks and social distancing. But I did notice the convention felt like a sense of normalcy for many con-goers after the pandemic. Everyone I met was so kind (and that's rare because you're bound to run into a few bad eggs or creeps), and every cosplayer I saw, even with the masks, made the most out of their costumes! My best friend and I also tried to cosplay as our favorite characters from Demon Slayer because the anime was a huge comfort to us while we holed up inside our homes with nothing to do. Yes, I think my costume was horrible because I am no professional, and I lowkey hate looking at pictures of it, but it did act as a nice escape from the COVID-filled reality at the time. Because of that, I was so happy to spend that precious time with my best friend! And buy a lot of stuff in the artist alley because Mega Con's is so big lol.

Another convention I went to earlier this year was the University of Florida convention, Swamp Con! I never knew until later in my first semester that UF held its own convention, and I think more students should know about it! Swamp Con is an event completely run by students in the Reitz Union, which I think is super impressive based on how many activities there were to do! There were panels, quizzes, performances, cosplay contests, an artist alley, outdoor games, special foods and drinks, and even a maid cafe (which was so funny to see a second time in a college). I also cosplayed again for this convention as Sophie Hatter from Howl's Moving Castle, which is such a huge shocker based on my Tumblr. 

Overall, the convention setting on a college campus took an unseen pressure off, which is something I also remembered feeling at PolyCon. I thought that would be an interesting thing to point out compared to venue conventions! 

[theanimetedworld]

Hey! I think it is really cool that you attended MegaCon, especially because it was right after Covid. I would love to have seen how that would have went with all the regulations and the short lines. I really like how much you love anime and cosplay and things like that. It is awesome to have a passion that you care this much about. I did not know that Swamp Con was a thing, but thank you for letting me know. I will definitely be checking it out next year. Overall, I really liked your blog post and thought that it was awesome how much you love Otaku culture.

[theanimetedworld]

Convention blog

I have personally attended one anime convention/fan gathering in my life when I was thirteen which was the Ft. Lauderdale AnimeFest. I went with my older sister’s boyfriend at the time, now fiancee. I had been interested in anime for about a year at that point and my sister’s boyfriend was a huge fan of anime. I had started off watching anime with him; he watched the beginning of Naruto with me and then I eventually just started watching it by myself because I could not wait to watch it. Anyways, we went to the convention for a few hours, just walking around and seeing all kinds of different anime and manga characters and booths. From this convention, I decided to watch more anime shows and movies, beginning my love for anime besides Naruto. Though I would not consider myself an Otaku whatsoever, I am more of a casual anime watcher, watching a new series every once in a while. The experience was also really cool seeing all these people who love anime so much that they spend a lot of their free time preparing their costumes, makeup, and every other little detail needed to dress as a real-life anime character. I live near this convention center so for me the experience was maybe a little bit less intense than others who had to stay in hotels with a bunch of other people dressed in cosplay and ready for the day at the convention, but I still had a great time. I honestly have not thought about this experience in a really long time as it just has not been relevant to my daily life, but being in this class has made me think about it a lot more. Genishken is also a reminder of this convention as I am very sure that a lot of the participants at the convention I went to would identify as Otaku and maybe even would join the society for the study of modern visual culture like the characters in Genishken. I do not identify myself as being Otaku at all as I have previously stated but it was really interesting while watching Genshiken to be able to think “wow the convention I went to in the past was basically just a huge meeting of this club”. I could not imagine being that dedicated to a fandom but I greatly respect it and I think that is such a cool thing to be passionate about. I actually talked about this in a previous video discussion response. I remember that I talked about how I thought that being so involved in a fandom is awesome and is a great way to express yourself. I also remember talking about fan art, which I know is a huge part of the Otaku community. I saw a lot of fan art on display at the Ft. Lauderdale AnimeFest from all kinds of different anime like Attack on Titan, Death Note, and many others. It was so interesting to see all kinds of different artwork in all the different styles. I remember this one absolutely massive painting of Sasuke from Naruto with some crazy blue aura around him that was at the front of the convention center. I was absolutely blown away by this artwork and thought it was so sick. Though I have not been to a convention since I was thirteen, I actually want to go to another one after taking this course. Overall, going to this convention was such a great experience for me and my sister’s boyfriend and also brought us a lot closer together as well as brought me into the world of anime.

[robian]

Wandering Son

Honestly, at first I thought this anime was a comment on discrimination against transgender people. However, by the end of the show, I think the anime was more of a comment on cross-dressing. Either way, the discrimination portrayed could easily be applied to either one because most people can't differentiate between the two. Most people, if they saw a bio male in a dress, would automatically jump to the conclusion that the person was transgender.

I thought it was interesting how the anime portrayed the contrast between male and female cross-dressers. Women can pretty much easily get away with dressing as a man, but if a dude were to wear a skirt (unless you're about to whip out the bagpipes), people would judge him. My personal thoughts on the cause of this is that women tend to be more fashionable in general, so a woman dressing as a man could just be seen as fashion.

The anime makes a pretty clear statement that society frowns upon men to women cross-dressing. What I think is interesting is how we've applied gender labels to so many things. Even the color pink is seen as girly. Personally, as a dude, I love the color pink. Society, from a young age, conditions us to like certain things. Boys are given toys different from girls, they're dressed in different clothing, etc. There's nothing biologically that implies a guy can't like wearing a skirt. It's all psychological conditioning.

I wonder if transgender people feel that they were born into the wrong body because their interests happened to align with the opposite gender's. gender and sex are fundamentally different after all. One is based on psychological aspects while the other is based on biological aspects. In my opinion, theres actually nothing psychologically wrong with transgender people at all, rather, it's society assigning labels that's the problem.

Society is wrong for discriminating these people just because they don't fall under it's standards. Just let people like what they like. If it isn't hurting anyone, then what business do you have with them. To all my homies out there, if you wanna go dress up as a woman, go do it. To all the ladies out there, if you wanna dress up as dude, go do it. Who cares what society thinks, cause it's all BS anyways.

p.s. if you disagree or feel strongly about any of the things I said just know I don't read any of yalls reposts, but feel free to criticize🙏

[theanimetedworld]

Hey Robian! I very strongly agree with you about your confusion on whether they are transgender or not. I understand that they cross dress but I also have no idea what they identify as. The fact that things are assigned gender is also really interesting to me; the example of pink being seen as girly was a really good example in my opinion. Why do we need to label and stereotype everything? I think doing this is dumb. Overall, I really enjoyed your blog post and I agreed with all of your points and thought you had some interesting ideas.